I didn't do too much the past two days that I can really write about, since they were spent either eating sushi, eating Japanese Korean BBQ, and hanging with my friend. By the way, I realize that I've basically only alternated from Japanese Korean BBQ and Sushi during my trip in Japan, and that's because I basically have. The other Japanese food isn't my style, and these two things are. Anyway, in lieu of doing that, I'm going to do some rankings now that the real adventurous part of the trip is done. I'm headed to India for another little trip and then the 18th hole in Singapore before the long haul back home.
The genesis of most of these lists was one night back in Cape Town (which seems like it was a decade ago, at this point), during a milk & honey session, I started writing down some random lists like 'Favorite Airports', and 'Favorite Airlines', you know, dumb stuff. Well, now that all the airlines and airports and cities I will be traveling to on the duration of the trip are all repeats, I feel like I am finally able to do this.
I'll start with the one I've already done, which is my Favorite 20 International Cities, which instead of bumping off some good cities I'll just make into 25. The ones that make the cut from this trip, outside of Cape Town which already was on my first list, are Tokyo, Melbourne, Sydney, Phom Penh (a real surprise) and Georgetown.
Anyway, on to my random, aviation inspired rankings:
My Favorite 10 International Airports (again, non US)
*Obviously, these are affected by when I went to the airport, what airline I was flying when I went there, what time of year and other stuff. Having a longer layover gives a better experience, but if its too long, it can really hurt the ranking*
10.) London Heathrow International Airport
It may be because I've only once flown into their new, gigantic, luxurious Terminal 5, but I find Heathrow maddeningly crowded, with a ridiculous amount of people shoved into old terminals. They have a giant overcrowding problem on the air side as well, with only two runways and enough flights to warrant five or six.
9.) Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International Airport
8.) Hong Kong Chep Lap Kok International Airport
7.) Seoul Incheon International Airport
.jpg)
I've put these three together because they are all kind of similar. They are giant airports, housed in one terminal (Seoul has two concourses, but still), with giant glass walls and cavernous insides, but they are hollow, soulless buildings where way more attention was paid to making the airport look nice than actually be nice in terms of passenger experiences. They have far too few food options, and far too many luxury store options. I'm spending six hours on a layover in Bangkok, so it has a chance to rise, but I have serious doubts. Bangkok is last out of the three for now because it isn't even all that pretty, with way too much concrete and way too few windows. Also, the way the windows are tilted, it is almost impossible to look outside. Hong Kong I've only been 10 years ago. I'll assume there's more to do inside now than there was then when it was quite new. Seoul is easily the best of the three, but there are six that I consider better to go.
6.) Abu Dhabi International Airport
It is the large honeycomb connected ceiling that is famous in Abu Dhabi's airport, and it is more unique than almost anything I've seen in airport architecture, but it the newer area of Abu Dhabi's airport that makes it rank this highly. It doesn't have great food options, but has an insanely good and convenient duty free area and free Wi-Fi, as well as large windows for some great plane watching.
5.) Munich International Airport
I've flown through Munich twice, and while it is the only one on the list lucky enough to not be that countries main airport (making it far less crowded), it is good enough to overcome that knock. Beautiful airport, really efficient, really well made. Typical German efficiency. Frankfurt is nowhere near as good of an airport, but that may be because it needs to be the Germany that was ruthlessly efficient.
4.) Zurich International Airport
I've spent way more time in Zurich's airport than I should, and I am basing this mostly on its newer Concourse E which is an underground train ride away from the main building, but that airport is a work of art. Beautiful hallways, placed well above the tarmac giving a great view of the planes below. Good food options. I've had some lengthy layovers there (most recently on my way to India in the summer of 2011), and wasn't bored at all. Free Wi-Fi as well, which is rare in airports.
3.) Madrid Barajas International Airport
I could have grouped the last two and Barajas together, as they are also similar. Barajas is actually strikingly similar to Zurich, with its main international flight area on its own concourse. What I love about Barajas is the food options in the airport, and how accessible it is from the city (of course, that is unfair since many of these airports I've only used on layovers). Barajas is far busier than its seems, which is a great credit to how streamlined the airport is. You never feel crowded or rushed. I also give credit to their unique roof designs which goes against the concrete that is so present in the more reputed Asian airports.
2.) Tokyo Narita International Airport
I couldn't really find a nice picture of Narita, but the size of that check-in hall does serve to show just how efficient they make things in Japan. Narita Airport is actually built in a very American style, with low ceilings and hallways, but ones that offer way more options for food, drink, and shop near the gates than those mammoths in Asia do. Narita rarely has delays (partly because most domestic flights go out of Haneda), and has enough Asian touches like artwork and sculptures to make sure you know that just because it looks like an American airport, it really isn't.
1.) Singapore Changi International Airport
Despite my pleasantly surprising love for Narita, it, and nothing else, comes close to Changi. They make life so easy, with gyms, pools, layover hotels, waterfalls, a walking tour of various gardens (butterflies, orchids, cacti, birds), movie theaters, and so much more. Their large entrance halls are so well kept with their floral walls. The airport when you get closer to the gates is also in an American style. It doesn't need the giant window walls and cavernous main terminal areas of Bangkok and Hong Kong. No, it lets its ridiculous amenities speak for itself. Also, just a random note, but the approach into Changi is great, over the Singapore bay, passing over the East Coast Seafood Center, just inviting you into Singapore.
My Favorite International Airlines (again, non US; then again, as if they would qualify)
10.) British Airways
Their intra-Europe service wasn't bad, but the one time I flew BA out of Europe, it was a disaster where the back-of-seat Video didn't work for basically the entire flight. By the way, that is it didn't work for anyone, not just me. The food is average, the service is average, their planes don't even look all that nice.
9.) Thai Airways
This might seem low, but the gap from 9 to 8 is a lot. My favorite part of Thai Airways is the traditional Thai dress they make the flight attendants wear. The food was slightly disappointing, since they didn't really offer anything Thai. They didn't chill the beer, either, which matters when you get this high. I'll give them credit for their livery, which looks really nice on their planes. They have one of the few A380's that actually looks decent, unlike most which look like monsters.
8.) Iberia
I actually only took Iberia once, and it may be my love for anything Spanish affecting this ranking, but I really enjoyed my experience on Iberia. They had great food, great drink (and they didn't care that I was only 18 at the time), a good movie selection for what was there at the time (it was 2010). It was also my first experience on an Airbus A340-600, which is probably my favorite plane. Just to reinforce that last fact, I've taken three of them, and those were the only flight routes I've taken on those airlines, and they all make the list.
7.) South African Airways
My SAA flight was also an A340-600, from New York to Johannesburg. It is the 14th longest flight, by mileage, in the world (soon to be 12th, after Singapore stops their Singapore to Newark and LAX flights), but the seventh longest by flight time, a discrepancy I haven't really figured out. Anyway, it was the longest flight I've ever taken, clocking in at 16 hours and 10 minutes, but incredibly enjoyable. They had good food, great service, and although this has nothing to do with the airline, with a more-than-half empty plane, there were at least three seats per person in our little corner of coach.
6.) Lufthansa
Except for one airline to come (which happens to be very closely linked to Lufthansa), I've taken the German machine more than any on this list. I've enjoyed it every time. They have very new planes, great seats, better food than I would have thought, and really comfortable blankets (yes, I remembered this extremely random fact). I'm giving Lufthansa credit for holding value across more than one or two flights.
5.) All Nippon Airways
All Nippon is regarded as one of the world's premier airlines, and I can see why. I took far from their prestige flight, in a morning Tokyo-Bangkok sector on an older Boeing 767-300. Still, the flight was great. Their Asahi beer was ice cold. Their food was OK, but I probably made a mistake going with their Japanese food option. Their movie selection was good, and their seats were really, really comfortable. I can only imagine what they are like on their priority sectors.
4.) Swiss International Airlines
I've taken Swiss more times than it makes sense for me to have, and I've enjoyed their service every time. I loved the chocolates they give throughout the flight, the food that is always quite good. They had touch screens before most European airlines. Swiss is to me, the best EURO airline, and I'm happy I've been able to take it as much as I have.
3.) Cathay Pacific
I took Cathay Pacific a long time ago, and I might be forgetting some of my experience, but it was great. They gave more food than any airline I have seen. Now, times have changed since 2003 in the aviation industry, and cost consciousness as it comes to food is a larger factor, but they gave two full meals and two decent sized snacks on the 15 hour JFK-Hong Kong route. Their movies were good for the time, and they just gave a wonderful in-flight experience.
2.) Singapore Airlines
There is a chance that after I finish the 20 hours aboard a plane for Singapore to New York, via Frankfurt, on Singapore's A380 that I might rank them 1st, but still, Singapore was as good as advertised. A ridiculous movie and TV selection (complete seasons of quite a few shows like Mad Men, Game of Thrones). Their food was good, but slightly disappointing, which is why they rank 2nd and not 1st. Their alcohol selection was the most generous I've seen, offering a variety of cocktails along with the usual fare. Their seats are excellent. I was lucky to take their two best planes (A380 and B777-300ER), but their fleet is modern enough that I'm sure they're all as good. My dad swares by Singapore Airlines, and I can see why.
1.) Etihad Airways
They were the first airline I took to have a touch screen. They were the first airline I took that had three meal options for their main meal. They had more rounds of drink service than any airline I've been on. They're lam biryani was about as good as any lamb biryani I've had. And they had this cool mood lighting with purple and green lights all flight long on the night flight from JFK to Abu Dhabi (and it was light enough that it didn't effect people's sleep). Emirates gets all the praise, but as reports of Emirates service slipping continue to come in, Etihad is poised to take their mantle. Just a great experience.
*All picture credits to the brilliant photographers that upload their photos at airliners.net*
The genesis of most of these lists was one night back in Cape Town (which seems like it was a decade ago, at this point), during a milk & honey session, I started writing down some random lists like 'Favorite Airports', and 'Favorite Airlines', you know, dumb stuff. Well, now that all the airlines and airports and cities I will be traveling to on the duration of the trip are all repeats, I feel like I am finally able to do this.
I'll start with the one I've already done, which is my Favorite 20 International Cities, which instead of bumping off some good cities I'll just make into 25. The ones that make the cut from this trip, outside of Cape Town which already was on my first list, are Tokyo, Melbourne, Sydney, Phom Penh (a real surprise) and Georgetown.
Anyway, on to my random, aviation inspired rankings:
My Favorite 10 International Airports (again, non US)
*Obviously, these are affected by when I went to the airport, what airline I was flying when I went there, what time of year and other stuff. Having a longer layover gives a better experience, but if its too long, it can really hurt the ranking*
10.) London Heathrow International Airport
It may be because I've only once flown into their new, gigantic, luxurious Terminal 5, but I find Heathrow maddeningly crowded, with a ridiculous amount of people shoved into old terminals. They have a giant overcrowding problem on the air side as well, with only two runways and enough flights to warrant five or six.
9.) Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International Airport
8.) Hong Kong Chep Lap Kok International Airport
7.) Seoul Incheon International Airport
.jpg)
I've put these three together because they are all kind of similar. They are giant airports, housed in one terminal (Seoul has two concourses, but still), with giant glass walls and cavernous insides, but they are hollow, soulless buildings where way more attention was paid to making the airport look nice than actually be nice in terms of passenger experiences. They have far too few food options, and far too many luxury store options. I'm spending six hours on a layover in Bangkok, so it has a chance to rise, but I have serious doubts. Bangkok is last out of the three for now because it isn't even all that pretty, with way too much concrete and way too few windows. Also, the way the windows are tilted, it is almost impossible to look outside. Hong Kong I've only been 10 years ago. I'll assume there's more to do inside now than there was then when it was quite new. Seoul is easily the best of the three, but there are six that I consider better to go.
6.) Abu Dhabi International Airport
It is the large honeycomb connected ceiling that is famous in Abu Dhabi's airport, and it is more unique than almost anything I've seen in airport architecture, but it the newer area of Abu Dhabi's airport that makes it rank this highly. It doesn't have great food options, but has an insanely good and convenient duty free area and free Wi-Fi, as well as large windows for some great plane watching.
5.) Munich International Airport
I've flown through Munich twice, and while it is the only one on the list lucky enough to not be that countries main airport (making it far less crowded), it is good enough to overcome that knock. Beautiful airport, really efficient, really well made. Typical German efficiency. Frankfurt is nowhere near as good of an airport, but that may be because it needs to be the Germany that was ruthlessly efficient.
4.) Zurich International Airport
I've spent way more time in Zurich's airport than I should, and I am basing this mostly on its newer Concourse E which is an underground train ride away from the main building, but that airport is a work of art. Beautiful hallways, placed well above the tarmac giving a great view of the planes below. Good food options. I've had some lengthy layovers there (most recently on my way to India in the summer of 2011), and wasn't bored at all. Free Wi-Fi as well, which is rare in airports.
3.) Madrid Barajas International Airport
I could have grouped the last two and Barajas together, as they are also similar. Barajas is actually strikingly similar to Zurich, with its main international flight area on its own concourse. What I love about Barajas is the food options in the airport, and how accessible it is from the city (of course, that is unfair since many of these airports I've only used on layovers). Barajas is far busier than its seems, which is a great credit to how streamlined the airport is. You never feel crowded or rushed. I also give credit to their unique roof designs which goes against the concrete that is so present in the more reputed Asian airports.
2.) Tokyo Narita International Airport
I couldn't really find a nice picture of Narita, but the size of that check-in hall does serve to show just how efficient they make things in Japan. Narita Airport is actually built in a very American style, with low ceilings and hallways, but ones that offer way more options for food, drink, and shop near the gates than those mammoths in Asia do. Narita rarely has delays (partly because most domestic flights go out of Haneda), and has enough Asian touches like artwork and sculptures to make sure you know that just because it looks like an American airport, it really isn't.
1.) Singapore Changi International Airport
Despite my pleasantly surprising love for Narita, it, and nothing else, comes close to Changi. They make life so easy, with gyms, pools, layover hotels, waterfalls, a walking tour of various gardens (butterflies, orchids, cacti, birds), movie theaters, and so much more. Their large entrance halls are so well kept with their floral walls. The airport when you get closer to the gates is also in an American style. It doesn't need the giant window walls and cavernous main terminal areas of Bangkok and Hong Kong. No, it lets its ridiculous amenities speak for itself. Also, just a random note, but the approach into Changi is great, over the Singapore bay, passing over the East Coast Seafood Center, just inviting you into Singapore.
My Favorite International Airlines (again, non US; then again, as if they would qualify)
10.) British Airways
Their intra-Europe service wasn't bad, but the one time I flew BA out of Europe, it was a disaster where the back-of-seat Video didn't work for basically the entire flight. By the way, that is it didn't work for anyone, not just me. The food is average, the service is average, their planes don't even look all that nice.
9.) Thai Airways
This might seem low, but the gap from 9 to 8 is a lot. My favorite part of Thai Airways is the traditional Thai dress they make the flight attendants wear. The food was slightly disappointing, since they didn't really offer anything Thai. They didn't chill the beer, either, which matters when you get this high. I'll give them credit for their livery, which looks really nice on their planes. They have one of the few A380's that actually looks decent, unlike most which look like monsters.
8.) Iberia
I actually only took Iberia once, and it may be my love for anything Spanish affecting this ranking, but I really enjoyed my experience on Iberia. They had great food, great drink (and they didn't care that I was only 18 at the time), a good movie selection for what was there at the time (it was 2010). It was also my first experience on an Airbus A340-600, which is probably my favorite plane. Just to reinforce that last fact, I've taken three of them, and those were the only flight routes I've taken on those airlines, and they all make the list.
7.) South African Airways
My SAA flight was also an A340-600, from New York to Johannesburg. It is the 14th longest flight, by mileage, in the world (soon to be 12th, after Singapore stops their Singapore to Newark and LAX flights), but the seventh longest by flight time, a discrepancy I haven't really figured out. Anyway, it was the longest flight I've ever taken, clocking in at 16 hours and 10 minutes, but incredibly enjoyable. They had good food, great service, and although this has nothing to do with the airline, with a more-than-half empty plane, there were at least three seats per person in our little corner of coach.
6.) Lufthansa
Except for one airline to come (which happens to be very closely linked to Lufthansa), I've taken the German machine more than any on this list. I've enjoyed it every time. They have very new planes, great seats, better food than I would have thought, and really comfortable blankets (yes, I remembered this extremely random fact). I'm giving Lufthansa credit for holding value across more than one or two flights.
5.) All Nippon Airways
All Nippon is regarded as one of the world's premier airlines, and I can see why. I took far from their prestige flight, in a morning Tokyo-Bangkok sector on an older Boeing 767-300. Still, the flight was great. Their Asahi beer was ice cold. Their food was OK, but I probably made a mistake going with their Japanese food option. Their movie selection was good, and their seats were really, really comfortable. I can only imagine what they are like on their priority sectors.
4.) Swiss International Airlines
I've taken Swiss more times than it makes sense for me to have, and I've enjoyed their service every time. I loved the chocolates they give throughout the flight, the food that is always quite good. They had touch screens before most European airlines. Swiss is to me, the best EURO airline, and I'm happy I've been able to take it as much as I have.
3.) Cathay Pacific
I took Cathay Pacific a long time ago, and I might be forgetting some of my experience, but it was great. They gave more food than any airline I have seen. Now, times have changed since 2003 in the aviation industry, and cost consciousness as it comes to food is a larger factor, but they gave two full meals and two decent sized snacks on the 15 hour JFK-Hong Kong route. Their movies were good for the time, and they just gave a wonderful in-flight experience.
2.) Singapore Airlines
There is a chance that after I finish the 20 hours aboard a plane for Singapore to New York, via Frankfurt, on Singapore's A380 that I might rank them 1st, but still, Singapore was as good as advertised. A ridiculous movie and TV selection (complete seasons of quite a few shows like Mad Men, Game of Thrones). Their food was good, but slightly disappointing, which is why they rank 2nd and not 1st. Their alcohol selection was the most generous I've seen, offering a variety of cocktails along with the usual fare. Their seats are excellent. I was lucky to take their two best planes (A380 and B777-300ER), but their fleet is modern enough that I'm sure they're all as good. My dad swares by Singapore Airlines, and I can see why.
1.) Etihad Airways
They were the first airline I took to have a touch screen. They were the first airline I took that had three meal options for their main meal. They had more rounds of drink service than any airline I've been on. They're lam biryani was about as good as any lamb biryani I've had. And they had this cool mood lighting with purple and green lights all flight long on the night flight from JFK to Abu Dhabi (and it was light enough that it didn't effect people's sleep). Emirates gets all the praise, but as reports of Emirates service slipping continue to come in, Etihad is poised to take their mantle. Just a great experience.
*All picture credits to the brilliant photographers that upload their photos at airliners.net*
